Draft gear for railway cars



4 SHEETS-SHEET I.

Patented June 13, 1922. v

HCo

R. D. GALLAGHER, JR.

DRAFT GEAR FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPUCATION FILED AUG.I1| i921.

Z C" ff x T 4 A R. D. GALLAGHER, 1A.

DRAFT GEAR FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FIIED AUG II.v I92I.

1,419,669, l PatentedJune 13, 1922.

R. D. GALLAGHER, 1R.

DRAFT GEAR FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICAT'ON .FILED AUG. Il, 192K.

L41 9,669 Patented June 13, 1922.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

] wucntoz W .y A I afbouw? S R. D. GALLAGHER, JR. DRAFT GEAR FOR RAILWAY CARS.. APPLICATION FILED AUG.1I, Ism.

Patented June 13, 1922.

IsIIIzETs-SHET 4.'

' 7 7 of rig. 5.

HQE.

RICHARD D. GALLAGHER, JR., OF'FLATBUSH, NEW YORK.

DRAFT GEAR FOR RAILWAY CARS.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, RICHARD D. GAL- LAGHER, Jr., a citizen of the United States, residing at Flatbush, in the county of kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Draft Gears for Railway Cars; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

This invention relates to draft gear and is in the nature of an in'iprovement upon the structure described and shown in my prior Patent No. 1,353,529, dated September 21, 1920. Draft gear of this type aie designed to withstand exceedingly heavy draft and buffing strains and involve problems of strain and weight which may to a large extent be ignored in ordinary draft gear when an excess in weight of metal is permissible, but which excess, if employed in proportion in high capacity gear would render the same too weighty and of too great size for practical or desirable practice. It is the object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a high capacity gear having a maximum strength and relatively small weight, the design being especially suitable for use wlth present permissible standard coupler shanks of reduced cross section without danger of rupturing or upsetting the spring barrel.

In the accompanying drawings,-

Figure 1 is a view looking into the open end of a spring barrel of a gear embodying one form of the present invention.

Fig. Q'is a similar view of a preferred form ofbarrel.

Figs. 3 and 4 are sectional views in planes indicated by dotted lines 3-3 and LL-4;, respectively, of Fig. .1.

Figs. 5 and are sectional views in planes indicated, respectively, by dotted lines 5-5 and G-G of Fig. 2.

Fig. 7 is a transverse section in a plane indicated substantially by the dotted line The springs, spring plate and frictional elements have been omitted from all of the figures of the drawings, with the exception of Fig. 3, from which last mentioned'gure the relation ofthese parts in the remaining figures of the drawings will be readily understood.

Referring particularly to Figs. y1,' and 4, it will be seen that the barrel is a substan- Speciication of Letters Patent. Pwtnted June 13, 1922.

Application filed August 11, 1921.

Serial No. 491,543.

tially rectangular structure, preferably made of malleable iron or steel and having within it a series of spring cells. These cells are formed by partitions B extending between the side walls A of the barrel and in tersecting each other, forming at the intersections relatively heavy points of union which, however, are made somewhat lighter by cored out openings C. In forming the partitions, which latter, it will be understood, are integral with the walls of the barrel, they are made relatively thick and heavy at their inner ends, where they merge into the heavy end wall A of the barrel, and from that point toward the opposite open end of the barrel they are gradually reduced in thickness in longitudinal lines, and, of

course, between adjacent spring cells increase in thickness toward the side or edge walls, owing tothe fact that the cells. are of generally circular formation.

All of the partitions are formed to extend centrally only to a point about half the dis tance from the end wall A to the opposite end of the barrel, as indicated at a in Figs. 3

ande, but atv their edges they extend up along the side and edge'walls of the barrel to av point where they merge in the friction box seat or wall forming the mouth of the barrel at C. This cut out or cut away portionof the transverse partitions inthe barrel forms a working space for the sprin plate D, center wedge E and side wedges For cooperation with these elements, there is mounted in theniouth of the barrel a friction box (lr. preferably held therein by shear pins lying in recesses in the adjacent faces of the barrel and friction box.

In the end of each cell, adjacent wall A', seats H are formed for the inner ends of the springs, while the outer ends of the springs are held centrally and positioned by co-operation with the spring plate D. The spring plate itself is adapted to move down into the space formed by the cut away portions of the partitions, and to prevent inter ference with the sides of lsaid partitions, it is preferably recessed or notched opposite each partition side, as in the patent hereinbefore referred to. Y

The result of the formation of the cells by the upwardly or outwardly tapering partitions is the production of spring cells' barrel structure is shown in end elevation and in which the incllned walls are clearly indicated at K.

to make use of but five springs of this character and the structure shown in Figs. 2, 5, (i and-7 is designed to meet this situation. Referring nowl` to the last mentioned figures of the drawings, it will be seen that there is a central spring cellM and two pairs of spring cells N, N', respectively. In this 1nstance, as in the former instance, the cells are formed to taper inwardly or toward the inner end wall of the barrel, the pairs of cells being formed by outwardly tapering and centrally cut away partitions O, but the center cell is formed in part by said partitions O and in part by the inwardly inclined side walls P of the barrel itself, as shown in Fig. These inwardly inclined central portions of the side walls of the barrel lie opposite those portions of the barrel which are designed to forni the bearings for the strap by which the device is connected with Athe coupler shank, and, hence, it becomes necessary to provide wear or bearing surfaces for said strap. This is accomplished by the, formation of webs Q overlying the inner end portions of the side walls P and by offsetting )ortions of said side walls near the outer end of the barrel as at P. To strengthen these offset portions and to prevent any possible upsetting or collapse of the barrel under severe strain, the web P2 extends longitudinally across the offset portion, as clearly shown in Figs. 5 and 7.

Byvreference to Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 6, it will be seen that the partitions forming the cells, while of gradually decreasing thickness in all transverse planes parallel with the axis of the barrel, appear in elevation at the outer ends to gradually increase in thickness. This is due to the fact that said partitions are of gradually decreasing width and consequently. when viewed in elevation, the thicker portions are further from the plane of the section or are a less distance from mately proportioned to the shear lengthwise of the structure and hence the quantity of metal employed may be reduced to a minimum while maintaining the maximum strength and permitting of the use of springs of maximum size and capacity.

I claim:

1. A draft gear comprising a spring barrel closed 'at one end and openat the other and having a series of inwardly tapering spring cells extending parallel with the line of draft strains, said cells being formed by a plurality of longitudinal partitions having their central portions at the forward ends cut away to form a central working space for the spring Aplate and their rear ends of gradually increasing cross .sectional area and merging into therear end wall of the barrel, independent springs located 1n said cells, a spring plate against whlch the forward ends of the springs abut, a follower and friction elements lintermediate the follower and spring plate.

2. A draft gear comprising a spring bar-l rel open at one end and closed at the other and having .a series of inwardly tapering spring cells extending parallel with the line \of draft strains, said cells being formed by longitudinal partitions integral with and merging into the side and inner end walls of the barrel, said partitions having their central portions at the forward ends cut away on curved lines to gradually reduce their width and `form a central working space for the spring plate and of gradually increasing thickness from' the outer to the inner end of the barrel, whereby pressure applied to the center of said inner end wall will be distributed uniformly to the side walls of the barrel, independent springs in said cells, a spring )late against which the springs abut, a fol ower and friction ele ments intermediate the follower and spring plate. y

8. A draft gear comprising a spring barrel of substantially rectangular cross sectional contour to forni flat faces for co-operation with the car frame and. strap, said barrel being open at one end and closed at the other and with a series of inwardly tapering spring cells formed by transverse partitions integral with the barrel and of gradually increasing thickness from the open to the closed end of the barrel, said partitions being cut away centrally atthe forward ends to form a working space for the spring plate, a series of springs in the cells, and a spring plate in the open end of the barrel against vwhich plate the springs abut.

4. A draft gear comprising a spring barrel closed at one end and open at the other` of substantially rectangular cross sectional contour and having a central spring cell and two pairs of opposltely disposed spring cells, the said pairs of cells being formed by parformed by said partitions and inwardly converging central portions of the side walls of the barrel, said barrel also having flat faces opposite the inwardly converglng portions of its wall to form bearing surfaces for thecoupler strap, Ysprings in said cells, and a spring plate in the open end of the barrel againstwhich. the springs abut. l

5. A draft gear according to claim 4 characterized by having the flat faces for the strap bearings formed at' the closed end -of the barrel by a web located outside of the inwardly converging Walls of the barrel and atthe open end of the barrel by outwardlyA offset portions of said converging walls.

6. A draft gear spring barrel closed at.

one end' and open at the other and having a seriesiof inwardly tapering `spring cells extending parallel with the line of., draft strains, said cells 'being formed by a plu- K rality o'f longitudinal partitions of gradually increasing cross sectional area toward -the closed end of thev barrel andinerging at such end into the end wall of the barrel.

7. A draft gear spring barrel closedfat one end and open at the other andzhaving a series of inwardly taperingspring cells'I extending parallel with the lline of draft strains, said cells being formed by a plurality of llongitudinal partitions of gradually increasing 'cross sectional area toward' `the closed end and side walls of the barrel and merging into said end'and side walls ofthe barrel. f

RICHARD D. GALLAGHER,l JR.- 

